Economic Overviews

Every now and then, US taxpayer money goes for something useful and surprisingly informative such as this infographic from the US Census Bureau deconstructing the "American Economic Machine"...The graphic cites facts dealing with manufacturing, services, retail trade, construction, government and much more as seen through the numerous economic programs and surveys conducted by the Census Bureau.

"… those who are waiting for the Fed cavalry to ride over the hill and rescue the economy are doomed to disappointment....The banks are awash in loanable funds, businesses are cash-rich and opportunity-poor, and interest rates are already so low that lower still will not attract borrowing....More liquidity is unlikely to impart more impetus to the sluggish economy…. Congress and the President should not count on the Fed to bail them out of their mistakes…. Central banks are unable to help in the face of persistently flawed economic policies."

The U.S. outspends China, the next-biggest military power, by nearly 6-to-1. Check out today’s infographic to see which nations round out the top 10 – and in the "What Do Others Say?" section below, explore more about the costs and benefits of superpower status.

By threatening to drop money out of helicopters to fight deflation - to leave a paperweight on the "print" button if you will - Bernanke convinced the market and all of Wall Street that the Fed would always be there to step in and save the day. [In fact, however,] the whole thing was a bluff meant to prop up the markets - the famed Bernanke Put - and it was a lie. The markets will be realizing this in the coming months, if not sooner, and when they do, we'll see the REAL Collapse: the one to which 2008 was just a warm-up. [Let me explain.] Words: 444

Warning: New evidence points toward an imminent financial collapse and the destruction of American wealth. Income, investments, retirement, and even personal safety are now at severe risk. In this new video I lay it all out for you. Words: 515

Is austerity working properly or is it working to bring countries to their financial knees so bankers can remake them from the ground up? Let's take a look at the infographic below which shows what we can expect.

Fact #6: Americans wasted enough food in 2010 to fill 91 Empire State Buildings (33.79 million tons) which was up 16% from a decade ago. The average American wastes 209 to 254 pounds of edible food each year. Meanwhile, more than 17 million American households were considered "food insecure" in 2010, meaning it was difficult to provide enough food for everyone in the family. 46 million Americans, about one in seven people, relied on food stamps.

One of the best leading indicators to shed light on the health of the economy is the Purchasing Managers Index (PMI). The latest local readings of the manufacturing PMI for countries around the world, as provided below, collectively give investors a critical insight into the pace of economic growth. Words: 944

This is the 5th in a series of 100 useful facts about big issues facing American voters which are being presented by www.FaceTheFactsUSA.org every day until the election to help Americans debunk myths, hold better conversations, get involved, and make choices as smarter citizens. Today's facts are related to Jobs and the Economy.

Americans drive nearly twice as many miles as they did in 1980, but miles of public roads have increased 6% and, as such, we spend more than twice as much time in traffic congestion as we did in 2010.